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The 1860 Census offers a vivid snapshot of America on the brink of Civil War. Covering both states and counties, this census was the eighth in U.S. history and captured over 31 million people living in the nation at that time. For genealogists and historians, it is one of the most important sources for understanding mid-19th century America.
Every household was recorded by name, age, sex, race, and occupation. The census also documented enslaved persons, providing researchers with essential, though painful, records of slavery in the United States. Taken just a year before the war began, the 1860 census shows the divisions between North and South, rural and urban life, and the growing industrial and agricultural shifts that defined the period.
For family researchers, this index provides a path to identifying ancestors, connecting them to places, and seeing how their lives fit into the national story. It’s an invaluable tool for anyone tracing genealogy in the decades leading up to the Civil War.